All guides
The complete list of guides on SoftlyStill — 420 pieces, newest first, 30 to a page.
When to drink coffee so it does not ruin your sleep — the version for a bad week, when you have woken up too early
Caffeine has a long tail. The cup at 3pm is still in your system at 9pm, whether you feel it or not.
Read →Using your body to come down after something stressful — explained without jargon, when the day has been loud
After a stress response, the body is left with fuel it did not use. Some of the recovery is physical, not mental.
Read →Do you actually need eight glasses of water — what actually works, when you feel fine and want to stay that way
Eight glasses is a number with no particular evidence behind it. Thirst and urine colour are better guides.
Read →Breathing exercises that help during panic — a short, honest guide, if you have five quiet minutes
Deep breathing is the wrong advice during panic. What helps is a longer exhale and something concrete to count.
Read →A morning routine that survives a bad night — a straightforward guide, when you have tried everything else
Most morning routines are designed for people who slept well. Here is a version that works on four hours.
Read →Why anxiety shows up in your body first, when you are waiting for something
Racing heart, tight chest, churning stomach. Understanding the mechanism makes the symptoms less frightening.
Read →Tired eyes after a long day of screens — a practical guide, when you are too tired to try hard
Eye strain is mostly about distance and blinking, not about blue light glasses.
Read →Why your weekend does not feel like rest — the short version, when you are not sure this will work
Rest is not the absence of work. If the weekend is full of decisions and obligations, it does not restore anything.
Read →How to get through the first hour without your phone, in the order that helps, when you are not in the mood
The first hour sets the tone for attention all day. You do not need willpower — you need the phone to be somewhere else.
Read →How to study when you cannot concentrate — an honest guide, when you are somewhere unfamiliar
Concentration is usually a problem of task size, not willpower. Shrink the task until starting feels almost silly.
Read →A wind-down that starts before you are tired, step by step, when you feel restless rather than tired
Waiting until you feel sleepy usually means waiting until midnight. The wind-down is what creates the sleepiness.
Read →Waking up anxious for no obvious reason — what works and what does not, when nothing else has worked today
Morning anxiety is common and usually chemical rather than psychological. Cortisol rises steeply in the first hour after waking.
Read →When to be careful with breathing exercises — the two-minute version, when you are on your own
Breathing exercises are generally very safe, but there are situations where the standard advice needs adjusting.
Read →Releasing tension you did not notice you were holding — a realistic guide, if you are fitting this around other people
By mid-afternoon most people are holding their shoulders, jaw and hands without knowing. Here is a two-minute check.
Read →Using the commute as a boundary between work and home, for people who have tried everything, when you have more time than usual
The commute is the only transition most people get. Used deliberately, it stops the workday following you into the kitchen.
Read →Ten minutes outside is not a wellness cliché — the long answer, briefly, when you have been putting it off
It is the least fashionable intervention available and one of the most reliable. Here is what it actually does.
Read →When grief arrives out of nowhere — a gentle, practical guide, if you are sceptical about all of this
Grief does not follow a schedule. The waves come less often over time, but they do not stop, and that is not a failure.
Read →How to stop scrolling in bed — a calm, practical approach, when you are cold and want to be warm
The phone is not the problem. The fact that it is within reach and there is nothing else to do is the problem. Here is what actually helps.
Read →What to do when everything is too much, in plain terms, when you only have a few minutes
Overwhelm is not a lack of capacity. It is too many open loops and no order to them. The fix is unglamorous.
Read →When the inner voice will not let something go — what actually works, when you want something simple
Self-criticism usually repeats because it is trying to prevent something. Arguing with it does not work. Understanding it sometimes does.
Read →Working in a noisy place without losing your mind — a short, honest guide, when you want to finish something
You cannot always control the noise. You can control what your attention does with it, and what you put in your ears.
Read →The five minutes after a difficult meeting — a straightforward guide, when you are doing this for the first time
Back-to-back meetings leave no room to come down. Five deliberate minutes changes the next hour.
Read →What to do when you wake at 3am, when you have just finished work
Waking in the middle of the night is normal. What turns it into an hour of lying awake is the reaction to it.
Read →Preparing for a conversation you are dreading — a practical guide, before you go back to something hard
Most dread is about the first thirty seconds, not the conversation. Prepare for those and the rest gets easier.
Read →When to drink coffee so it does not ruin your sleep — the short version, when you want to be left alone
Caffeine has a long tail. The cup at 3pm is still in your system at 9pm, whether you feel it or not.
Read →Using your body to come down after something stressful, in the order that helps, if you are new to this
After a stress response, the body is left with fuel it did not use. Some of the recovery is physical, not mental.
Read →Do you actually need eight glasses of water — where to start, when your attention is scattered
Eight glasses is a number with no particular evidence behind it. Thirst and urine colour are better guides.
Read →Breathing exercises that help during panic — the unglamorous version, when you have been meaning to start
Deep breathing is the wrong advice during panic. What helps is a longer exhale and something concrete to count.
Read →A morning routine that survives a bad night — a plain-language guide, before something difficult
Most morning routines are designed for people who slept well. Here is a version that works on four hours.
Read →Why anxiety shows up in your body first — the two-minute version, when the house is busy
Racing heart, tight chest, churning stomach. Understanding the mechanism makes the symptoms less frightening.
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